Never Again
by Muse of Fanfiction
Summary: When Persephone finds her beloved husband Hades kissing the lips of the nymph, Minthe, no words can describe how distraught she was. Now she escapes to the world above, wondering if she could ever forgive him for going back on his words.
1. Chapter 1

"How could you, Hades? How could you even do such a thing?"

Persephone stares at her husband with tears in her eyes. She did not even bother to lift a finger to wipe it away, as she felt that those tears kind of helped to blur away the image of her husband kissing the nymph, Minthe.

Hades was overwhelmed with guilt when his wife caught him in the act. But she did not know that he wasn't in his right mind when he did it. He was daydreaming about her, and the daydreams had turned so strong that he could not tell the difference between her and the nymph. And he just had to order her to kiss him.

"Please, my love. Forgive me. I did not even know what I was doing..." he apologizes softly as he walked towards her with his arms spread wide.

Persephone looks away from him and holds up a hand to stop him. He pauses just inches away from her, his arms dropping to the sides.

She looks at the green plant in her left hand, the one that used to be the nymph she hated so much now. With anger fuelling inside her, she clenches her hand into a fist, thus crushing the fragile plant. Hades watches her hand open slowly and the crushed leaves falling to the floor immediately.

"Persephone..." he whispers, wanting so bad to make amends.

She turns to him in a flash and immediately swings her hand at him, hitting him right on the cheek with her open palm. There was a loud smack at the hard contact of their skins.

Her nostrils flare and more tears emerge from her eyes as she watches him wince in pain. And then she immediately drops the hand she used to slap him as she looks at him in shock. It was the very first time she has ever struck her husband, or anyone for that matter. It has been a very long time since she was so angry at him, ever since the day he kidnapped her to the Underworld.

He touches a hand to his cheek. It stung at his touch and his eyes watered from the pain. But he was not angry at her for hitting him. He himself knew that he deserved it. He deserved it for hurting his gentle queen.

Persephone backs away from him, shouting, "When you stole me from the Earth, you promised to love me in every way possible, that I was the only one to capture your heart! When you fed me that pomegranate, you told me the same words! **I believed you!** Even worse, **I loved you back!** And now you go back on your words and express love to that worthless nymph! **How can I ever forgive you, Hades?**"

The tears flowed faster this time. She was not afraid to express her sadness. She had given him her trust, and he destroyed it.

Unable to look at him any longer, she turns away and proceeds to exit the throne room.

"Persephone," he calls after her.

Not looking back, she whispers, "Just leave me alone, Hades..."

"Persephone," he calls out again and proceeds to run after her.

Hearing his fast footsteps, she runs too. She wills herself to run as fast as she could, to escape from him. She runs through the hallways, turning around every corner and rushing down the stairs. Finally, she finds herself at the front of his palace, and facing the river Styx.

She sees a boat docked alongside the banks of the river and a familiar hooded figure sitting on the land next to it.

"Charon!" she calls out, running to him.

The boatman looks up and sees the queen, running to him with tears streaking down her cheeks.

"My lady, what has happened?" he asks her worriedly. Unlike his master, Persephone has allowed him to not speak so formally when addressing her. Instead, they both speak as though they are friendly neighbours, and Charon is quite content with it.

Persephone climbs on board the boat and sits down, her knees drawn up with her chin resting on them and her arms holding her shins.

"Please Charon. Take me away from here," she whispers to him pleadingly.

Although fearful of what the lord might do to him, he could sense that the lady was in much distress. Not wanting to make her feel worse, he obeys and grabs hold of the oar that was laying on the ground beside him. Climbing on board, he dips the oar into the waters of Styx. Once he felt it touch the riverbed, he pushes at it, willing the boat to move.

Before they were even halfway across the river, both Charon and Persephone hears a masculine voice cry out her name from the palace grounds.


	2. Chapter 2

Thanatos and Hecate hurries to the source of all the crashing noises. To their surprise, it came from the throne room.

They find the doors opened and the crashing getting louder with each step closer to the room. Thanatos pushes the doors open slightly more and looks inside.

Nothing could describe the shock both of them felt at what they were seeing.

Lord Hades was picking up pieces of furniture and throwing it to a wall in rage. The fury was clearly seen on his face, most especially in the lips that was pulled into a snarl and the eyes that showed the depths of his immense rage. Thanatos and Hecate watched as a table he has thrown smash into little pieces at the contact with the black wall. Never before have they seen him so furious.

"My lord! What is happening?" Thanatos calls out as he enters the room, with Hecate following behind him.

Hades' head whipped to the side, seeing his subjects entering the room with disbelief and shock written on their faces. He lets go of the chair that he was about to throw and falls to the floor, crying.

Hecate, who has always been so affectionate to her king, kneels beside him. "My lord, what upsets you?" she asks him gently as Thanatos stands by her side.

Hades looks at her, feeling very pathetic of himself. Here he was, the fearful God of the Dead and King of the dreaded Underworld, crying in front of the minor goddess of witchcraft and the personification of Death. But he didn't care. His grief was too great for him to care about other trivial matters.

"I have greatly upset my queen, Hecate. She has run away from me," he whispers.

Hecate takes a deep breath before she sits down beside the king.

"What ever did you do to upset Queen Persephone so greatly?" she asks softly, being careful that she does not agitate him.

Hades sighs as he recalls their fight.

"In a moment of blindness, I have kissed Minthe, nymph of the Cocytus. My queen has witnessed the foul act and, in a fit of rage, has transformed the nymph into a feeble plant."

He gestures to the crushed leaves on the floor near him. Thanatos walks to it and picks one up to examine it.

"She accuses me of lying about my words of love for her. She tells me about how I had tarnish the trust she has given me. She has even strike me in anger."

Hades touches his pained cheek, reminding himself of the punishment he has bestowed upon himself.

Hecate sighs.

"Lord Hades, forgive me for saying this, but she had the right to react the way she did."

Hades sighs and begins to stand up. Hecate grabs hold of one of his hands to help him balance.

"I know what you say is true, Hecate. I do not blame her for being angry with me. I am in the complete wrong here."

Thanatos, who has been silent throughout the whole discussion, finally speaks up.

"Do not mind me for saying this, my lord, but there is only one way to settle this now."

Hades looks over to him and asks, "And what would that be?"

Thanatos gulps, afraid that his words might anger the king further but knew that it was the right thing to say.

"Go after her."

* * *

When the boat had finally reached the other side of river Styx, Persephone had told Charon the story of her despair.

"I feel so betrayed, Charon. How could he do that to me?" she asks him in wallowing sadness.

Charon sighs. He did not know what to say. But he wonders to himself; why would Lord Hades ever upset his queen? She had always been gentle with him, and their marriage looks to be of pure bliss. In comes a little nymph and the happy picture became broken.

"I'm sure the Fates created this because something greater would come to the both of you," he says in an attempt to cheer her up.

Persephone starts to shout, "What greater thing could come after this? He has betrayed me! He blinds me with words of his so-called love and then goes back on his promise! I am a fool for believing him!"

Charon remains silent as the queen shouts at him. When she had finally calmed down, she began to regret the way she acted towards him.

"I'm so sorry, Charon. I didn't mean to-"

Charon cuts her off.

"It is alright, your grace. I understand. But might I ask, what do you plan to do now?"

Persephone looks up at the stony hill, staring at the stairs that would lead her to the gates of the Underworld, the only other way to get out to Earth.

"I need to clear my head. The Underworld seems too suffocating now," she whispers.

Charon nods and watches as she jumps off the boat and onto the land. As he was about to travel back to the other side, he says to her, "If you ever return here, call out for me and I shall bring you back."

Persephone nods and waves to him. "Thank you, Charon!" she calls out to him.

She was able to catch the glimpse of the smile on his lips.

But as she turns to the stairs, she wonders to herself whether or not she would come back to the Underworld.


	3. Chapter 3

Persephone threads up the stairs. Once in a while, she would always look behind her to see if anyone, or _a certain someone_, was following her. But it all met the same results; no one followed her.

She dreads in the thought that Hades might have forgotten about her already. She could feel new tears burning in the back of her eyes, but she shakes her head in anger.

_No more tears! You are a strong woman. That is what mother would have told you._

Suddenly, her heart sank at the thought of her mother, Demeter. How she longed to be in her mother's arms right now, to feel the comfort of her warmth. But she could only be with her after four months, due to the deal Demeter and Hades had made so very long ago.

However, Persephone also had a good idea of how her mother would react if she ever told her the story of why she ran away from the Underworld. She remembered the times when she would defy against her mother's claims about Hades and defend him. Demeter would surely mock her if she were to tell her everything.

And she didn't feel like going to her mother now. She wanted to be alone, to think to herself.

Suddenly, she has reached the top of the stony hill and before her stood the huge and intricately-designed iron wrought gates of the Underworld. On the other side of the gates would be the land above.

She takes a deep breath and walks towards it. With each step she took, she became more frightened. Was leaving the Underworld really a good idea? She did not know, but she was determined to do it, no matter what.

But just as she was inches away from the barrier between the Earth and the Underworld, a massive black figure jumped out from a huge cave beside the iron gates.

Persephone gasps in fright as she looks over to the beast that had emerged.

The canine beast was huge and its pelt was the colour of ebony. It crouched on its hind legs as all three heads snarled at her, their golden eyes glaring at her.

Persephone immediately relaxes, recognising the creature, and lets out a sigh of relief.

"Oh, Cerberus. You do not wish to harm me, do you?" she asks in a motherly tone.

Cerberus the hellhound immediately recognises the sweet voice of his mistress and relaxed too. All three heads hung out their tongues as a sign of excitement while the body changed into a stance that signals to her about how happy he was to see her, which was further evidenced by the wagging of his tail.

Persephone comes forward to Cerberus and begins to scratch all three heads. The middle head nuzzles its nose into her belly. Persephone giggles.

"Oh Cerberus, you do know how to make me smile," Persephone whispers. But even then, she couldn't fight off the dark feeling inside her and needed to escape.

She hugs Cerberus one more time before she turns back to the gates. She could hear him whimper behind her. She looks over her shoulder at him and could see the sadness in the six eyes. Feeling guilty, she walks back to him and touches the nose of the middle head.

"I need some time to myself, Cerberus. Away from the Underworld," her voice became thick with tears as she says, "and away from the king. But please don't tell him."

Seemingly understanding her, he nods all his heads once.

She smiles. "I'll be back soon. I promise."

She plants a kiss on each head before, once again, turning back around. With her powers, she unlocks the gates and hears it creaking as it opens for her. As she steps out of the Underworld, she glances back at Cerberus, who was staring at her and whimpering.

"You didn't see anything," she reminds him.

He lays his heads down on the ground and closes his eyes to look as though he was asleep. Persephone casts one more grateful smile before walking away.


	4. Chapter 4

Charon steadily rows the boat back to the palace grounds. As he emerges from the fog that floated above Styx, he was not that surprised to see a familiar figure in black waiting on the riverbanks.

"My lord," he greets as he docks beside the land.

Hades does not return the greeting. He stays still, standing upright with his hands clasped behind his back. He watches as Charon jumps onto the land and bows to him.

Charon studies the fatigue on his master's face. He could easily tell that the dark lord has been crying profusely, as there was still a tinge of red rimming his eyes and glistening tear tracks on his cheeks.

"Where is she, Charon?" he asks in a voice that was heavy with sadness. "Where did Persephone go?"

Charon sighs. He didn't want to tell him, for Queen Persephone's sake. But he was still his master and he was to obey him.

"She has travelled to the world above," he tells his ruler solemnly. "She has requested that she be by herself, but has informed me that she will return."

Hades did not seem entirely convinced.

Saying nothing, Hades walks away from Charon and climbs on board the boat. Charon looks at him quizzically, seeing him standing with his arms crossed.

"I'm going after her, Charon," Hades tells the boatman without looking at him. "I'm going to apologize to her."

Without any questions, Charon climbs on board the boat again and begins to row it to the other side of Styx yet again.

"Did she tell you?" Hades asks him, looking ahead of the river.

Charon gulps, but remains calm.

"She did, my lord. I do hope that you are not too angry with me."

Hades sighs. "I am not, Charon. You are one of my most loyal subjects. It is difficult for me to be upset at you for a long time."

Charon just nods his head. "Thank you, my lord. It is truly an honour to hear those words."

Silence ensues for the following minutes. No one said anything for a long time, just listening to the water below them moving against the boat.

"My lord?"

"Yes, Charon?"

Charon clears his throat, before speaking.

"I know that this may not be any of your business, but I do advise you to be gentle with the queen. Never before have I seen her so close to breaking."

Hades lets out an even heavier sigh. "But I did do that, Charon. I had never raised my voice to her, or hit her. And she goes running off."

Running a hand through his short and messy midnight black hair, he murmurs, "But I know it is still my fault."

As Charon continues pushing the boat further away from the palace, he answers, "It is good that you realize your mistake. And to add to the advice, I only have this to say; at times like these, it may seem too difficult to convince her that you truly do regret your actions. But all you need is to show her an act that really proves your love, and she may just be able to forgive you."

Despite the empty feeling he had inside him, Hades smiles.

"Thank you for the good advice, Charon."

* * *

It was white everywhere.

The land that used to be green and full of life was now covered in thick cold white powder. The trees were now barren, having been stripped of its beautiful leaves and flowers and juicy fruit just two months prior. Not even one animal of the forest emerge, all of them sleeping in until the snow melts and the land flourishes again.

Persephone shivers at the feel of the freezing wind on her skin. She cursed herself for forgetting that this is what the world has become when she disappeared to the Underworld. All created by the hands of her mother.

Little fluffs of snow that fell from the sky flecked her waist-length, wavy brown hair and her long, rose-pink chiton. Her sandaled feet left tracks on the white snow on the ground as she walked around aimlessly.

_Maybe it was a bad idea to leave the Underworld_. she thought to herself. _Maybe I should just turn back._

Suddenly, another voice in her head appears.

_Don't be a fool, Persephone! Do you want to go back to the dark realm and let him see you and think about how pathetic you look? That you can't survive without him?_

Feeling insulted by that new thought, she begins to stand upright and walk with big strides. She hopes that he was seeing this; that he was seeing how capable she was of handling herself. That she was an independent woman who can survive without a husband who betrayed her trust.

But even then, she couldn't help but feel exhausted. She didn't know where she was now, but she knew that she was far away from the gates. Artemis must now be riding her chariot, as the dark sky of night was slowly appearing.

She looks around her, hoping to find a place to take refuge in for the day. To her relief, she sees a cave just ahead of her. Using her last bit of strength, she pushes herself to reach the mouth of the cave.

She was glad when she didn't feel any more snow falling on to her as she made her way inside. The cave felt surprisingly warm and toasty. Persephone sighed as she felt the warmth on her skin.

Feeling the exhaustion taking full effect on her, Persephone sinks to the ground and curls up into a ball to trap the warmth. Shortly after, she falls into a deep sleep.

But unknown to her, someone had followed her tracks.


	5. Chapter 5

Author's Note:

Big shout out to Fantasila and KraZiiePyrozHavemoreFun for being my first two reviewers! Thank you! (I'm a new kid here, so even the littlest things matter)

And now, on to chapter 5 of _Never Again_

* * *

Hades climbs the stairs that will lead him to the gates which separates the realm of the living from the realm of the dead. He tried to imagine Persephone climbing up these stairs and begins to wonder to himself about what might be feeling when she climbed these very steps; Fear? Anger?

When Hades finally stood before the gates, he immediately saw Cerberus lying down in front of it with his eyes closed.

He laughed quietly to himself. He knew himself that Cerberus never falls asleep on the job. The only reason he would was more likely because of a command by his queen.

Walking over to him and placing a hand on the head on the left, he says, "I know you're awake, Cerberus."

Caught in the act, the right head of Cerberus opens both its eyes, with the other two following.

The huge canine whimpered in defeat, yet Hades could not ignore the pleading tone of its whimper. It was as if he was trying to tell him to not be angry.

"I am not angry at you, Cerberus. Nor am I angry with your queen," Hades reassures him as he scratches the ears of all three heads. "I have to travel to the world above to find her. Do not worry so much. For my sake, Cerberus."

Cerberus whimpers in the exact same way as he did when Persephone left. He worries about the distance his master and mistress had put between themselves. He also hates it when they went up to the above world.

But seeing the desperation in Hades' eyes, each head nuzzled their nose into his abs, as if to tell him to be careful. Hades smiles at the loving gesture and turns away to enter the realm of the living.

* * *

Persephone awakes from her sleep in a flash.

She hears loud and heavy footsteps echoing throughout the cavern. She sees an eerie orange glow painting the walls as it slowly approached her.

She sits up and pushes herself further into the cave. When she felt her back make contact with a boulder, her heart began racing and she was sweating profusely.

Persephone could not believe how weak she felt. She tried to summon some magic into her fingers and, to her shock, could only produce a tiny spark. Her hand fell to the ground quickly, as she was unable to hold it up.

She bit her lip in worry. Never before had she felt so powerless. She was defenceless against the creature that is now in the cave with her. Her only logical option was to hide and remain silent, hoping that the creature did not see her.

But at that moment, the orange glow shone on her.

* * *

Hades travelled through the snow-covered wasteland, following the dainty footprints which he could tell was Persephone's.

As he looks at the snow and feels the freezing temperature of the wind, he begins to worry about her. Was she alright? Was she still walking away with no clue of where to go? Was she taking a rest in shelter?

So many questions, but no answers. It made him frustrated.

As he studied the footprints, he began to notice that it kept going from side to side, as if Persephone had been swaying. It only made him worry even more. She must be exhausted. He knew that she did not eat anything, considering that the land did not produce even one ripe fruit.

Just as his eyes continued to follow the tracks, something made him stop.

Coming from the left, was another set of footprints. These tracks were bigger and seeped further into the snow. The person who created them must have been heavy.

But Hades was confused as to why there would be anyone out in this freezing weather. Every one stayed inside their homes. The only ones who are brave to face the cold outside world were…

_Hunters._

Hades felt his heart race and began to run.

He kept his eyes on the set of tracks. He noticed the bigger footprints marking on top of Persephone's, knowing very well that the hunter was following it.

Hades ran with all the speed he could summon in his legs, hoping that he wasn't too late.

* * *

"Well, well, well. Look what I have here."

Persephone looks at the face of the man in front of her. He was illuminated by the glow of the torch he was holding, the fire crackling strongly. She could see his features properly.

He had chestnut brown shoulder-length hair that fell in waves. He had a wide forehead and perfectly arched eyebrows. His nose was slender and his cheekbones well-defined. His lips, which were now curled into a lecherous smile, were perfectly full. He was tall, but not as tall as her husband, and had bulky muscles.

Persephone knew that this man is a mortal, but yet, she could feel the blood of a god flowing in his veins. His looks were another obvious indication; his beauty was far too magnificent for the normal human male. She finally realizes that he was none other than a demigod, a half-breed.

He was covered in various animal pelts and she began to feel fear at the sight of his clothing, knowing very well that he was a hunter.

But what scared her the most were his eyes. His eyes blazed a dark green, and they looked at her in the manner of an animal who has just caught a prey; full of hunger.

Only, not the hunger that comes from the stomach, but from the loins.

She stayed where she was, still very weak to move, and asks him with hostility, "Who are you?"

The man's smile turns wider.

"I am Pirithous."

* * *

Author's Note #2:

I wanted to write this story because I kept on researching about Hades and Persephone, who are my two fave characters in Greek Mythology, and the two characters that had nearly affected their marriage, the nymph Minthe and the demigod Pirithous.

I liked how Persephone punished Minthe by turning her into a plant for flirting with Hades and how Hades punished Pirithous for trying to steal Persephone from him.

I seem to be working fast. Because let me tell you, when I get a story in my head, it doesn't go away until every word is typed in my computer :)

_Girl in Dreams_


	6. Chapter 6

_Persephone, my love. If you can hear me, hold on._

_I'm coming for you._

* * *

Persephone gasps in shock when she heard his name.

"Son of Zeus?" she mutters under her breath.

Pirithous pirate smile stays and he nods. Persephone cannot believe that she had finally met one of her many half-breed half-siblings.

But she did not feel safe and comforted like she did with the rest of her family. Instead, she felt as though she was trapped, and that there was no escape.

She knew deep in her heart that she's in for it now.

* * *

Pirithous stares at the brown-haired, amber-eyed beauty before him. Her thick, luscious, wavy hair fell just right above her waist. Her amber eyes that looked more gold than yellow and framed by thick long lashes. Her face looked so innocent and so beautiful that he himself couldn't describe it. She was a few inches smaller than him, but was very slender.

He allowed his eyes to gaze at her body. She had a thin pink chiton on, and it did no justice in hiding her perfect curves. Then, his eyes travelled to her chest, feasting on the sight of the lovely and perfect swells.

"What are you looking at!" she spats at him like a rabid animal as she crosses her arms over her chest, hiding them away from his sights.

He merely smirks. He loved a feisty girl. But this was no ordinary girl. He could immediately tell that she was a goddess.

And he just got more excited.

* * *

She felt violated when she noticed him staring at her body, more specifically at her breasts. She immediately felt so sickened that this foul half-breed was her half-brother.

"Now, now," he says in a mocking tone as he wedges his torch between cracks on the sides of the small cave. "A goddess like you should not have bad manners."

She exclaimed, "What goddess? Are you mental?" She did not want him to figure out her true identity, but she knew that her feigned ignorance did no good.

"Don't play with me. I myself know that one with so much beauty could not be just a mere mortal girl."

Persephone froze as he watches him take off the pelts of fur, revealing a hard and too bulky chest.

"Anyway, you should never disrespect a child of Zeus," he warns her.

Feeling insulted by his statement, she stands up in a flash, shouting, "**I am Persephone, daughter of Zeus and the Harvest Goddess, Demeter! And you dare tell me, a full-blooded goddess, to respect you, a filthy half-blood?**"

Suddenly, she felt the exhaustion taking over her in an instant and began to tip backwards. She had so little strength left, and all of it gone to waste just to scream at him.

She thought she was going to fall on the hard, stony ground. But two hands reached out for her, one grabbing her head while the other had the arm around her waist. She could see that she was just inches away from Pirithous.

She felt her heart stop at the closeness between them; they were only mere inches apart. Persephone could see directly into his lust-hazed green eyes.

He leans his head forward, bringing his lips to her ear, and whispers, "I have always dreamed of lying with you, Goddess Persephone. And now I can see that today is my lucky day..."

Feeling the fear infiltrating her, she screams the only name in her mind right now.

"**HADES!**"

But she was immediately cut off when Pirithous pressed his lips onto hers harshly.

* * *

Hades continued running with increasing speed now. The falling snow was becoming heavier, and with each passing second it covered the footprints he was following.

_Damn it, Persephone, where are you?_ he thinks to himself worriedly.

Suddenly, he stops in his tracks as a scream pierced through the silent air.

"**HADES!**"

His heart skips a beat. He knows that voice.

Persephone.

She was in trouble.

Looking ahead, he could see a cave amongst some rocky formations. Without wasting even a single second, he dashes towards it.


	7. Chapter 7

Persephone jumps at the hard feeling of his lips crushing on hers and lets out a muffled shout of protest. She tried to wriggle away from him, but he held an iron grip on her.

Defeated, she stayed still as she attempted to resist the tongue that was trying so hard to enter her mouth. She felt disgusted for kissing another man. It made her feel so dirty.

But suddenly, she began to think otherwise as she remembered Hades kissing Minthe. She remembered how her heart broke when she saw that incident and how no words could describe how angry she was at him.

Maybe, she shouldn't be scared right now. She could take this into her own advantage. Both she and he have kissed different people now, right? They were even. This could be her revenge for him. Let him know how she felt, how angry and betrayed.

_But do you think it's the right thing to do? _a voice in her head asks her questionably.

Hearing those words, she began to snap out from her thoughts of petty revenge. She felt even more disgusted with herself. She couldn't believe that she dared to think like that.

She realizes that Pirithous' tongue was now doing works with her unresponding one. She squirmed at the sluggish feeling and saw it as pathetic in comparison to how her husband does it.

Feeling a new kind of fury towards this wretched demigod, she bit his tongue. _Hard_.

He pulls away and screams in pain. Persephone sees her chance and quickly makes a run for the mouth of the cave.

But just as she thought that she was finally safe, a strong hand grabs her arm at the very last minute and throws her onto the ground.

She started screaming in panic when Pirithous goes on top of her, crushing her delicate figure under his monstrously bulky one. He covers her mouth with his hand, muffling her scream.

"A wild one, huh?" he whispers hotly into her ear. He grins as he says, "I like that."

She shivers in disgust when he licks the shell of her ear. Suddenly, she hears fabric ripping and could now feel his coarse leather pants against her smooth, bare legs. A breeze from outside travels in, covering her now exposed flesh in goose bumps.

She felt his rough hand skimming on her left thigh and slowly making its way up to her forbidden area as he plants kisses on her cheek bone.

Knowing that there was no escape now, Persephone closes her eyes, waiting for the worse.

But suddenly, she hears a scream.

* * *

He was far beyond furious.

The anger took over him immediately after he enters the cave, just in time to see a big and bulky man pinning his wife down to the ground, kissing her cheek and caressing her legs, all while covering her lips with a hand to quieten down her screams.

Immediately at the sight of the pain in his beloved wife's teary eyes, he charges towards the monster and grabs his long hair harshly. The man started screaming in pain and it got louder the minute Hades flung him to a stone wall effortlessly.

He hits the wall with so much force that tiny pieces of debris began to drop down from the ceiling. The volume of his screams increased as he holds a hand to his left shoulder, which was bleeding now.

Hades looks at Persephone, who stayed immobilized on the ground, silently crying. She was pale and had mild scratches on her legs and arms. She looked sick, as though she was about to fade away. The skirt of the pink-rose chiton she was wearing, which had been a present from him, was torn, revealing half of her thighs and her long, slender legs.

He couldn't even think about what would have happened if he was a second too late.

He wanted to take her into his arms and comfort her, to tell her that she was safe. But there was still one thing that he needed to take care of.

Tearing his gaze from her, he stomps to the vile creature who dares to assault her. He was lying on the ground, groaning. But he began screaming yet again when Hades grabs his throat and lifts him from the ground with ease, as though he weighed as light as a feather.

He glares at him, pure hatred emanating from his eyes.

* * *

Pirithous struggles to loosen the fingers of the demon that gripped his throat with brutal strength. But no matter how hard he tried, the fingers stayed clamped on him.

The face of the demon sent shivers down his spine. His looks complimented the dark aura that radiated from him. He had quite pale skin that made him look lifeless. His hair was as black as a moonless midnight. His eyes were the same, only, impossibly, a few shades darker.

His eyes frightened him. It had _death_ clearly written on them.

The demon too differed greatly in terms of figure. He was taller, and was well-built but lean. And yet he was able to pick him up with the strength of a god.

Wait. A _god_?

Pirithous' heart began pounding furiously as he realizes that this was no demon, but the God of the Dead himself.

Hades.

* * *

Author's Note:

Hey guys! Thanks so much for the reviews! Reading them really made me feel so warm and fuzzy inside (Really. No lie.) I'm really glad you liked it!

Anyway, I just want to announce that I have published the prologue of my second story. In it, I attempt to write my own take on the actual myth of Pirithous. Check it out if you can.

Until next time, stay cool.

_Girl in Dreams_


	8. Chapter 8

Author's Note:

Sorry for the late update. It's really difficult to write an intense fight and punishment scene.

I have been reading your reviews and thank you all so much for the good comments.

By the way, I like to thank Mykklaw for giving me the inspiration for the punishment. Hades couldn't send you a video, but he hopes you like it as much as he did!

Now, chapter 8 of _Never Again_

* * *

Her vision was hazy. Her head was spinning uncontrollably.

She couldn't keep her eyes open any longer, so she slowly slid it shut.

But she managed to get a glimpse of the tall figure in black who had saved her, before everything went black itself.

* * *

Hades glares at the vile being whose throat was grasped in his hand tightly. The creature desperately clawed at his arm, hoping that it would release him. Unfortunately for him, it didn't.

He studies this man like how a predator studies its prey, and was surprised to realize that he knew who it was.

"Pirithous, another one of Zeus' bastard children," he mutters darkly, his deathly glare not even straying from his captive.

Pirithous does nothing but thrash around, still attempting to break free. Hades tightens his grip once again, indicating a warning that if he were to move, his current punishment heightens.

The demigod felt as though his oxygen supply was cut off and finally, stays still.

"You have done a grave mistake for attempting to ravish my wife," he snarls. And finally, in one swift motion, he punches him across the face with all of his might.

Blood started trickling down his nostrils and a bruise began blossoming around his cheekbone, but Hades does not stop. He continues mercilessly, letting out all his anger at him.

"**DO YOU EVEN REALIZE WHO YOU ARE DEALING WITH!**" he shouts as he drives his fist into Pirithous' chest.

* * *

Pirithous begins to cough up blood. It was too much. The pain was all too much. He knew that if he didn't do anything soon, he was as good as dead.

So instinctively, in the middle of the continuous punches the fearsome God threw at him, he raised a fist and punched him right at the side of his jaw.

And then he froze, realizing that he had committed a seriously big mistake.

* * *

Hades' eyes stayed on the ground as he felt the throbbing pain go away quickly. He was overwhelmed with a new kind of rage, this one being murderous. His anger heightens, not believing that Pirithous not only dares to rape a goddess, but he also dares to hit a god.

He slowly turns to look at the demigod, who looks at him with plenty of fear in his eyes as his whole body trembled.

His lips curled back into a snarl and roars in pure fury as he throws him to the ground.

Pirithous lands on the stony ground with a hard thud. He tried to quickly recover and make his escape, but the dark god suddenly appears, standing beside him.

Lifting a foot, Hades stomps on his stomach. Pirithous coughs up more blood and begins to beg for mercy, but is only met with more stomps on his body and even kicks to his face.

* * *

After what seems like eternity, he was now entirely covered in blood. His entire body was mostly covered with cuts and bruises that seemed beyond healing now. The only sound that was coming out of his lips now was just pleading moans.

But Hades was not done with him yet.

He grips his throat in his masculine hand and picks him up with ease. He brings Pirithous' face inches away from his. He stares at the bloody face, whose eyes were slowly opening.

Then, Hades whispers darkly, "**Look into my eyes and see the horrors that await you. The gruesome and cruel punishment that awaits you in Tartarus, where you will never again see the light of day and never again feel joy for the rest of your miserable life.**"

Against his inner will, Pirithous looks into the god's fathomless black eyes.

And begins screaming in horror.

The demigod tries to close his eyes, but he finds that he couldn't.

All was hopeless now.

* * *

Hades watches as Pirithous writhes in pain and agony. He lets go and lets him fall to the ground, but he still continues struggling and trembling as though he is facing a violent seizure.

Then suddenly, fire started combusting at various parts of his body. But this was not the type of fire that Hestia, the Goddess of the Fireside, controlled. This fire was dark red, like blood, and black. Its temperature was far higher than the fire that burns on Earth.

This was the fire that burns in Tartarus.

Pirithous sees the fire and panics. He hits at them, hoping that it would die away. But with each hit, it becomes stronger and stronger until finally, his whole body was lit.

* * *

As the sound of his screams echoed throughout the cave, Hades rushes to Persephone's side. He sees her lying motionlessly with her eyes closed and his heart began beating rapidly as fear overwhelmed him.

He gathers her in his arms and places an ear above her breast. He felt relieved to hear a heartbeat, but it was a weak one. He has to get her back to the Underworld immediately.

He picks her up and looks at the blood red and black fire once again. When he could not see the vile creature's body, he smiles smugly to himself.

"Burn forever in Tartarus, you sick creature," he declares quietly as he slowly fades away with his wife in his arms.


	9. Chapter 9

Charon had been sitting on the banks of Styx when he heard a voice calling out his name from the other side. The familiar voice was urgent and desperate. It made him quickly climb on board his boat and row to the other side quickly.

When he approached the other side, he saw Lord Hades, with Lady Persephone in his arms.

"Great Styx! What has happened to the queen?" he exclaims as Hades jumps into the boat with the quick speed of a god.

"I will explain later, Charon. Right now we have to go back," Hades orders him with urgency in his tone.

Without further asking, Charon quickly rows back to the other side. He felt ridiculous for having to row back and forth, but it was his job after all.

When the palace was finally in sight, Hades shouts, "Hecate!"

As Charon docks and Hades jumps out of the boat and runs into the palace, Hecate appears. She stops in her tracks when she sees what Hades has in his arms.

"Lady Persephone!" she exclaims at the sight of her queen, who was motionless in the arms of her king. Hades simply brushes past her, ordering her to follow him.

He walked quickly to his bedchambers and threw open the mahogany double doors leading to the room with one kick. He carefully lays Persephone down on their huge bed, placing her head on one of the wine red silk pillows.

"I need you to heal her, Hecate," he whispers shakily. "She's too weak from staying in the cold world above without nourishment."

Hecate, who was standing beside him, nods.

"Of course, my lord. I will do my best."

Gently caressing her cheek with his finger, he leans down and plants a gentle kiss on her forehead.

"Please, my Persephone…. Wake up for me…"

Reluctantly, he slowly moves away from her and exits the room, leaving Hecate to do her work.

* * *

He didn't feel like staying in the palace. He needed someone to talk to. So he goes to sit on the banks of Styx with Charon.

Charon remains quiet as he tells him about what happened on the world above. About Pirithous. About the punishment he bestowed upon him.

"Only the gods and goddesses in Olympus would have known what would have happened if I was too late…"

Charon places a hand on Hades' shoulder, an unacceptable action to do towards a king. But Hades does not object.

"Do not worry about that anymore, my lord. What matters now is that he is suffering eternal punishment in the depths of Tartarus and that your queen is now back, safe and sound."

Hades sighs. "I know that Charon. But what worries me most is that I am still not sure whether she has forgiven me or not."

He cringes as he remembers the Minthe incident. How easy it had slipped from his mind.

Charon frowns. "Lord Hades, you don't think Lady Persephone is really that heartless, do you?"

"Of course not!" he exclaims. "My wife is the most gentle and loving person in my life. She is not, and will never be, heartless!"

"Then why do you worry that she wouldn't forgive you?" Charon questions. "I know deep inside that she will," he adds.

After a few seconds of silence, Hades nods.

"I think you're right, Charon."

* * *

Hecate focuses her energy on the queen, finding all the weak points in her body.

Slowly, she gently places a finger on the Persephone's forehead and grazes it down her nose, her lips, and continues on to the rest of her body. As the finger moved, magic trailed behind it, seeping into Persephone's skin and giving her the energy she lacked.

She will be alright, Hecate knew it. She is not too weak. All she needed was rest.

Hecate's fingers travels down the queen's stomach and was about to move on the legs when she finally stops.

She senses a strange occurrence in the body. Her eyes look over to where the finger was.

Above the womb.

* * *

Hades stays with Charon on the banks. They said nothing, only skipped rocks on Styx. But the silence was companionable, and they left it that way.

When suddenly, a feminine voice appears behind them.

"My lord?"

Hades turns to see Hecate. She had a smile on her ruby red lips as she looks at him excitedly.

"Hecate! Is she alright?" he questions as he got on his feet. He looks down at her, waiting for an answer.

She nods. "She is fine, my lord. She only needs a bit of rest."

Hades sighs in relief, but Hecate continues.

"But there is one more thing."

His worry rose again. "What is it?"

Slowly, Hecate spoke softly.

At hearing the words she said, a smile appeared quickly on Hades' lips.


	10. Chapter 10

Hi guys.

This is the last chapter of _Never Again_. I'm feeling sad too but I'm really glad to see that this story has garnered a lot of positive reviews. Thanks to you guys, I finally was able to find the perfect ending for my first story

In celebration for this ending, I had changed my pen name to _**Muse of Fanfiction**_. The 9 Muses came to me in a dream and told me that I am now the newly-appointed Muse :)

Anyway, please do visit my page for any news of upcoming stories. Check out my still on-going 2nd story, _The Wrath of Hades_. I have 2 upcoming stories; one involving the 3 queens of the three realms (which is _Hera_,_ Persephone _&_ Amphitrite_), this one might be my shortest, and another about my fave goddess, Artemis, which might take a while because there will seriously be a lot of angst in this one.

Once again, thank you all for giving me the encouragement for this story. And if possible, keep the reviews coming ;)

* * *

The first thing she felt when she opened her eyes slowly was confusion. She was confused as to why she was not resting on a ground of hard rock, but on a bed of fine silk.

When she looked at her body, she found that she was wearing an angelic white nightgown instead of her pink-rose chiton. Her confusion rose.

As her vision slowly clears, she began to recognise where she was.

In her bedchambers, back in the Underworld.

She felt a throbbing headache and winced at the pain. She groaned softly, wondering what had happened to make her feel like this.

Suddenly, she began to realize that there was something holding her left hand. With the little bit of strength she had, she turns her head to the left.

She sees Hades, sitting on the floor beside the bed, grasping her hand in both of his, with his forehead placed gently on it. He seemed to be asleep, judging by the way he breathed soundly and peacefully on her skin.

Persephone felt touched at the sight of her husband. And it was then she began to remember what had happened.

She remembered their fight and running off to the cold snowy world above. She remembered Pirithous and her struggle to escape. She remembered him pinning her to the ground as he tore away her chiton and touched her. She remembered how violated and disgusted she felt. And finally, she remembered the tall black figure that pulled Pirithous off her, thus saving her before she blacked out.

She already knew who that figure was.

Gently, she stroked the thumb of her left hand against one of Hades' fingers. She then felt a warm kiss being placed on that thumb before her husband's head looks up at her.

"Persephone," he whispers with a loving smile on his lips.

She returns the smile and wills herself to sit up. Hades gets up and helps her, adjusting the pillow behind her so that she could be comfortable.

Then she pulls him down to sit beside her on the bed. When he does, she slowly wraps her arms around him, which he does so in return.

With her face buried in his neck, she begins to cry softly.

"Thank you," she whispers through her tears. "Thank you for saving me…. I'm so sorry…. I was foolish to run away from you…. Please forgive me…."

Hades plants a kiss on her hair as he caresses her back soothingly.

"It's alright… I have forgiven you already…" he whispers to her lovingly.

Then he pulls her away from him. She looks up at him through tear-filled eyes, a soft smile on her lips. She leans in and gives him a gentle kiss to his lips. He returns it, and the next few minutes were silent as they both pressed their lips to each other.

Finally, both of them pull away, but did not let go. They stayed in their warm embrace. Persephone felt so safe right now in Hades' arms.

But although she was happy to be with him, she did not forget what had started this whole fiasco.

"Don't ever do that again," she grumbles. Hades pulls away to look at her. She glared at him angrily.

"If I ever catch you with another woman, be it nymph or human or goddess, there will be consequences! To the both of you!" she warned. "That Minthe is only an example of the least I could do. The worst has only yet to come."

Hades, being the smart and cunning god he was, counter-strikes her warning.

"That I can abide to. But keep in mind that you must also abide to what I am to say."

"Which is?" Persephone asks defensively as she crosses her arms.

Hades leans in closer until their faces were directly in front of each other, just inches apart. Persephone found that she couldn't keep her eyes off his lips and began thinking about how badly she wanted to kiss them. But reminded herself to not let her guard down.

"You have really crossed me when you ran away from the Underworld. And if it were to happen again, I swear upon Styx that I will find a way to keep you bound here forever. That way, you will never see the world above again."

Persephone gasps. She couldn't imagine her husband daring to do such a thing. But she knew he was being serious, as he swore upon Styx. She began to cry softly at his harsh warning.

He was quick to regret the way he said those words and pulls her back into a hug, which she does not object, resting his forehead on hers, he whispers, "I'm sorry, my love. I didn't mean it like that. I just want to keep you safe."

How true those words were to her ears. She began to smile again.

"I understand, and I abide to it," she tells him.

He smiles and gives her another loving kiss. At that moment, he began to remember the most important part.

He pulled away, looking at her eagerly. She raised an eyebrow as she thought to herself about how much he looked like a happy Cerberus.

"I have a surprise for you," he tells her.

She blinks. "A surprise? What is it?" she asks gleefully. She knew he knew how much she loved surprises, but she hated the thought of being in suspense.

Without saying anything, Hades places his hand above her belly. She was confused, until finally, she understood the significance.

"I'm expecting?" she whispers with a disbelieving smile on her lips.

Hades, who still has the loving smile she loved so much, nods.

And new tears began flowing down her cheeks. This time, they were tears of happiness.

She hugs her husband tightly as she giggles with tremendous joy. He holds her just as happily and plants soft kisses on her hair.

After a few minutes of laughing and hugging and kissing, they both remain still as they breathed heavily, still locked in their loving embrace.

Then, Persephone whispers, "I love you, Hades."

Hades answers, "I love you, Persephone."

"Please don't ever hurt me again," she pleads.

Hades looks at her and gives her a reassuring smile.

"Never again."

* * *

And that's a wrap! Once again, thanks to everyone who took the time to read and review this. Your kind words motivated me to go on. If it's possible, I hope that more reviews will come :)

I really had a fun time writing this. I seriously wish this could be real….

Anyway, if you have a question, just PM me, alright?

And now, signing off.

_Muse of Fanfiction_


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